


This New Thing

by firecracker189



Series: This Thing We've Become [1]
Category: Buzzfeed Unsolved (Web Series)
Genre: Caregiver!Sara, F/M, Gen, Non-Sexual Age Play, caregiver!shane, little!ryan, nsap
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-26
Packaged: 2021-02-26 04:16:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 19,312
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22060744
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/firecracker189/pseuds/firecracker189
Summary: Ryan Bergara--how long had they known each other now, and he’d neglected to mention this fucking massively important information?Shane might fuck around in good humor, but classifications were nothing to fuck with. That was some serious shit Ryan had been holding back on.
Relationships: Shane Madej/Sara Rubin
Series: This Thing We've Become [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1587835
Comments: 34
Kudos: 125





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Little_Bunny](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Little_Bunny/gifts).
  * Inspired by [The Weird Beginning](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21691579) by [Little_Bunny](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Little_Bunny/pseuds/Little_Bunny). 

It wasn’t till lunch time that Shane noticed something was up. He stopped by to bring Sara a water bottle and sneak a quick kiss. 

“And whatever happened to our dear friend Ryan Bergara?” Sara grinned, pushing some of his hair out of his face. 

“Y’know, I’m just not certain where Ryan Steven Bergara has wandered off to.” Shane plucked a grape from the bag on her desk. “You think I should go look for him?” 

“Give him a minute, he’s probably just late coming back from lunch.” 

Shane shrugged. “Eh, alright. But if he isn’t back in twenty I’m looking. He’s not usually late like that.” 

“Don’t think too much,” She cautioned as he walked away. 

Time ticked by. The next time Shane looked up an hour had passed and Ryan still wasn’t back yet. He stood, stretched, shut his laptop and grabbed his keys. Mumbling something passable to the office in general, he headed for the car. 

“What the fuck, Bergara, where are you?” 

Shane visited all Ryan’s usual haunts, coming up with nothing in the next hour. He’d given in to circling the two blocks by the office by the time the elusive Bergara turned up once more. Shane slowed and pulled to the curb, watching as Ryan exited a nondescript building across the street. His eye caught the small sign above the door and Shane let out a breath. 

“Jesus, Madej, what’ve you gotten yourself into now?” 

A daycare center. A fucking daycare center. As in: for Littles. 

He watched Ryan adjust the backpack he wore and fiddle with the hood of his sweatshirt before heading back towards the office slowly. 

Shane blinked incredulously. 

Ryan Bergara--how long had they known each other now, and he’d neglected to mention this fucking massively important information? 

Shane might fuck around in good humor, but classifications were nothing to fuck with. That was some _ serious _ shit Ryan had been holding back on. 

“Ryan _ Steven _ Bergara,” Shane put the car in gear and crept down the street. “You’ve got some ‘splainin to do, in the immortal words of I Love Lucy.” 

He pulled up near where Ryan was and stuck his head out the window. 

“Bergara!” 

Ryan pivoted slowly. “Shane?” He sounded tired. 

If Shane had to guess, repressing his headspace took a lot out of him. Shane couldn’t talk, though. Caregiver by class he might be, but he wasn’t so sure about that test. Maybe the results were fudged, or he got a bad test-giver-person. Sara on the other hand? A natural born Caregiver if Shane had ever seen one. Puppies, kittens, Littles, you name it and she was good with them. 

“Hey.” Shane licked his lips. “Was goin’ on a french fry run,” he fibbed artfully. “Wanna join me? Been lookin’ for your ass all afternoon and you’ve been awol.” 

Ryan approached the car, a pinched look on his face. “Um, Sure. Fries are good.” He got in the car and tucked his backpack down between his feet. Shane pulled away in the direction of the nearest McDonald’s and cleared his throat. 

“Where ya been all this time? Sara and I thought you’d died, or been kidnapped. You don’t have to have me tell you what happens to people, ‘cause you know what happens to people. You’re gonna end up in a box in pieces if you keep this up.” 

Ryan looked down at his feet, hands nervously wringing themselves together. “Sorry, Shane.” 

He sounded so much like a chastised kid that Shane had to backtrack a little. “That’s alright, I mean, it isn’t me you gotta apologize to, anyway. It’s Sara. She was pretty worried about you.” Shane cut easily across the traffic and into the parking lot. “Where were you, anyway?” he pulled into the backed up drive thru and put the car in park, looking over at Ryan. 

Ryan shrugged. “Just this thing I gotta do now and then.” He mumbled, looking like he didn’t feel too great. 

Shane frowned. “You know all kidding aside, you can tell me things.” 

“I..” Ryan sighed, biting his lip. “Shane, I--” his chin quivered, eyes watering as he finally stared Shane straight in the face, rather than looking down at the very un-Ryan-like battered up Converse he wore. “Shane.” He drew in a breath and Shane really felt for him as he pulled the car forward a few inches. “Shane. I’m, I’m a Little.” he let the words tumble out fast, looking like he might get hit for his trouble. 

“I know.” Shane replied easily. “And you know what, Ryan Bergara?” Shane took off his sunglasses and shoved them in the door pocket. “That doesn’t change a damn thing about the way I see you. You’re a good guy and one of my best friends. So what if you’re a Little? Now. There is the issue that something tells me you haven’t been taking care of yourself. So, pending authorization by my lovely other half, I’d like to ask you a question.” 

Ryan wiped a few stray tears from his cheeks and stared at him curiously. 

“Would you, Ryan Steven Bergara, care to use our place as a safe haven? Y’know, for when you need to not have so much on your plate. It’s cleaner than any public place like that one I saw you leave, and uh,” Shane shrugged and gave him a little half-smile. “And you know the people that own it, so…” 

“I-” Ryan took a little breath, knuckling at his eyes. “I’m…” Tired. He hadn’t fallen asleep during nap time, and everyone at daycare was always getting sick, and with their schedule he couldn’t afford to indulge his biology as often as he needed to other than a few hours here and there when he was at home. It sounded….really _ good _, thinking about having a place to drop like that, with people he trusted. “N-no lies?” He stuttered out, face open and shining and earnest. “No tricks?” 

“Ryan,” Shane said firmly. “This is a serious thing, and while I can’t say anything for my own classification, I do care for you. And I want you to stop feeling like you gotta hide something that’s so big and important from the people that care about you, right?” Shane ordered their fries and rolled his window back up. “So no tricks. I’m serious. I’ll head right back and talk to Sara about it if you want.” 

“I…” Ryan fiddled with his backpack, wondering worriedly whether his stuffed shark could breathe in there, all zipped up like that. “I…” he gave a tentative smile. “I want that.” 

Shane gave a winning smile, paid for their food and clapped him softly on the shoulder. 

“Good. Then that’s that. We’ll talk with Sara and go from there. Sound good?” 

“Uh huh.” 

Shane handed him the paper sack. “Good. Now eat your snack before they get cold.” 

Shane let Ryan hustle past him, back to his desk to check his messages, making sure his butt was in the chair before he headed out to find Sara again. 

“Hey.” he said softly. “Got a minute?” 

Sara’s nodded. “Sure. Hallway?” 

He nodded. “Yeah. Just need a second.” 

“What’s up, babe?” She turned to face him with a little frown.   
“It’s uh, well,” Shane ran a hand through his hair. “I found Ryan.” 

“And?” 

“And uh, I um,” he bounced slightly on the balls of his feet. “Well, it’s like this. Ryan’s uh, of a certain classification group status, and he was worried we’d be mad at him if we knew, so he kept it a secret.” 

“You mean…” She lowered her voice. “Ryan Bergara is a Little?” 

“That, he is. And uh, before you keep talking there’s something you should know.” 

Sara raised a brow. “Oh, really? And what’s that, Shane?” 

“I kinda offered him our place as a sanctuary when he needs downtime.” 

“That’s…really sweet, actually. Though, you’re one to talk. You literally always bitch about your classification and how it makes you feel like your results were faked.” 

He shrugged. “Well, he cried, so…” 

“He cried?” 

“Yeah. I saw him come out of that daycare center a few blocks down, and then he was tired, and he cried and I bought him french fries and,” he shrugged. “I dunno, it all just happened.” 

Shane took her hands in his. “What do you think?” 

“I think,” she studied him for a moment, then gave an impish smile. “I think this will be good for you. But you have to understand, he needs a schedule, you can’t let him be in charge of this. We’ll talk more later, but for now, I’m just going to say yes.” She looked over her shoulder. “I gotta get back into that meeting.” Sara stood on her toes and kissed his cheek. “I love you.”

Shane watched her go. “Love you.” he mumbled to the air. He shoved his hands in his pockets and meandered back down the hallway. “Well, here’s hoping.” he muttered. 


	2. Chapter 2

Shane heard nothing more about the situation for several days. It had nearly slipped his mind altogether by the time Sara brought it up again. He’d finished up washing dishes, they were enjoying a post-dinner glass of wine together, watching Obi shred the latest scratching post installation. Sara put her glass down on the end table and grabbed her tablet.

“So, you remember how you said you wanted to help Ryan?”

Like he could  _ actually _ forget, how ever ‘on the edges of his brain’ the subject had become. 

“Yeah?” Shane set his glass down and took a sliver of sadistic pleasure in watching Obi having so much fun sharpening his claws. 

“Well,” Sara cleared her throat. “I kind of took the liberty of doing a little research. I put together some general characteristics of kiddos of all ages, some general stuff. But I’d like you to see if you can’t get Ryan to give you a little more info about himself. Y’know, likes, dislikes...I mean, we don’t even know how old he is. We can’t give him a safe haven if we don’t know what age he is.” She pointed out. 

Shane scratched at his chin lightly, nodding softly. “Right. I guess I should have thought this out a little more, huh?” 

“Oh, no.” Sara put the tablet down between the two of them and placed her hand on his arm. “Shane, that was very sweet of you, very supportive. You did a good thing. But we do need something to go on if he’s going to be over here on occasion. That’s all I’m saying. I’m not saying you did anything wrong. But obviously Ryan trusts you if he agreed to this. And if he trusts you, I’m hoping that means he’s going to be able to give you more information.” 

He scooted a little closer to her, sighing through his nose. “Yeah. I’ll take him to lunch, see what happens.” 

“Shane, are you nervous?” She looked up at him and he shrugged, suddenly feeling like he’d been put in the hot seat. 

“I dunno, I just,” he toyed with his fingers lightly. “I don’t wanna let him down, y’know? This is big thing. I had trouble sleeping last night just ‘cause I was up thinking about how big this all is...how he’s been conning us all like this.” He looked over at Sara. “Sara, you can’t just...repress like that, not if you’re a Little. You know what happens. All those times I’ve caught him taking pills, looking like he felt like shit…” Shane felt like he’d been punched in the gut. “He was...he was repressing his headspace to the point where it made him sick, and I didn’t even notice. What kind of Caregiver does that make us if we didn’t notice that?” 

Sara scooted up against him and laid her head against his arm. “Don’t. Don’t do that. Please don’t beat yourself up like that. You didn’t even know. He hid it all from us so well. All we can do now is help him learn not to do that anymore and to treat himself kindly and indulge his headspace in a healthy way.” She smiled up at him. “And besides, you’ve got me here to help.” 

\---

By the time he’d gotten Ryan to agree to go to the deli to grab some lunch with him, Shane felt like that diagram from Lilo and Stitch, but instead of his anger level it was his stress level. 

“What’s up with you?” Ryan glanced over at him. “You’re about to vibrate yourself out of the car.” 

Shane pulled into the parking spot and cut the engine. “Nothing. I’m tip top. Now let’s go get some chow.” 

They chatted amongst themselves as they waited for the food to finish up, then grabbed their bags. “You wanna just eat in the car?” 

“Yeah, that’s fine.” 

Shane found a decent place to park, rolled the windows down, and they dug in. Companionable silence reigned as they demolished their sandwiches. 

“Y’got a lil’ bit of mustard on your lip, Ryan.” 

Ryan looked up, swiping at his face with the napkin. “Did I get it?” 

“Almost. Lil’ bit left right there,” he pointed to a spot on his own cheek. 

“Here?” Ryan swiped again. 

“No. Just--” Shane let out an exasperated sigh and grabbed the napkin, wiping Ryan’s face with it himself. “There. Good as new.” 

Ryan balled up his trash and squirmed in a soft way Shane figured meant he’d indirectly triggered a slide towards headspace. 

“So, uh,” he stuffed his trash down in the bag with Ryan’s. “Listen. About the other day,” 

Ryan rubbed at his jaw anxiously, eyes widening. “Um. Don’t-don’t feel like you...you gotta like, do anything or anything.” 

“No, listen, I just meant...we needed some more information if we’re gonna be able to help you out.” Shane began quietly, treading carefully lest Ryan feel too uncomfortable. “I-we just, that is, Sara and I are just gonna need to know some stuff before you, y’know, come over.” 

“Like what?” Ryan turned slightly, so they could see each other better. 

“Well for starters, how old are you typically? That seems like a good place to start since you never told me.” 

“Uh, well,” Ryan looked as uncomfortable as Shane had ever seen him. “I’m seven.” 

“Seven, huh? That’s a good, solid age. Not too young, not too old. What do you like to do when you’re uh, in headspace or whatever?” Shane wasn’t exactly comfortable, either.

“Um. I like Thundercats and superheros. And Legos. I like to color.” 

“Anything you don’t like or are afraid of? Y’know, like, are you scared of the dark? Do you have some kind of irrational hatred for any kind of food?” 

“I don’t like the dark. Too many things I can’t see.” 

“Do you sleep with a night light?” 

“Uh huh. And um, I like Cheetos. I don’t like grapes much. I like games.” 

“What kind of games? Board games, or?” 

“I have a Nintendo Switch. I like Smash Bros but I also wouldn’t mind having someone to actually, y’know, like color with or play board games with.” 

Shane mentally logged away all the information, nodding as Ryan kept speaking. 

“Okay. Good to know. Anything else you want to let us know, just text us, okay?”

Ryan nodded, seeming to be grateful to have the spotlight off of him for the moment. “We should get back.” 

“Alright. But just…don’t think that you can’t come over, okay?”


	3. Chapter 3

Ryan woke up around two AM with massive stomach cramps and feeling colder than he’d felt in his life. It’d been a week since he’d had his conversation with Shane, but he hadn’t yet been able to bring himself to go over there, even if he’d wanted to. He flung himself off the mattress and dived for the bathroom, making it in the nick of time before he puked up nearly everything he’d ever eaten, tears running down his cheeks from the exertion. Ryan gave himself a moment, recovering before he reached up and flushed the toilet. It was dark, his nightlight went out, he felt terrible, and he really didn’t want to be alone. Stumbling around, he flipped on the lamp by the bed and grabbed his bag from underneath it. Haphazardly, Ryan tore open drawers and shoved all his best loved items into it: Sharkie his beloved plush, his Nintendo Switch and charger, his Batman slippers, Batman pajamas, some socks and underwear. He even took the burnt out nightlight from its place in the wall socket. Last but not least the blanket he cuddled up with when it was time to sleep. He was far too big to have a ‘blankie’ per se, but he did have a cozy blanket he needed at night time. Zipping the bag up, he shoved his socked feet into a pair of unlaced sneakers and grabbed his phone and keys. Quickly locking the door, Ryan opened the car and slung his bag into the passenger side. He didn’t even call. Sara had made it clear the last time he’d seen her that he didn’t have to. Any time he felt the need, she said, he could show up any time day or night. Well...here was the chance to truly test that. Ryan made it there in record time, stomach churning again as he parked on the street. Another few exhausted tears slid down his cheeks as he fumbled to unbuckle himself and turn off the car. Dragging his bag with him, Ryan stumbled blindly to the door and mashed on the door bell. 

“Mm.” Sara sat up a little, rubbing her eyes. “Shane.” 

Shane didn’t budge. She shook him slightly. “Shane.” 

“What on earth do you want at this hour?” He murmured. 

“Shane, what if it’s Ryan?” 

That did it. He sat up too. “You don’t think…” 

“Who else would it be at this hour? Shane, go get the door. What if he’s Little and out there all alone in the dark?” 

Shane slung his pajama pants on in record time and hurried from the room, leaving her to turn on the lights and put her robe on. 

“Who is it?” Sara followed to the living area, stopping short at the sight. Ryan was standing there, looking miserable with large tears leaking down his cheeks and clutching that duffle bag like his life depended on it. 

“Ryan’s here.” Shane ushered him inside and shut the door. 

“Ryan?” She queried softly, stepping forward. “Honey, what’s wrong? It’s late.” 

Ryan’s chin crumpled. “M’sorry!” He dropped the bag and covered his face with his hands. “Please don’t be mad! I just...M’sick and I didn’t wanna be sick by myself, it’s scary.” he whimpered softly and Sara felt all her self control fling itself headlong out the window. 

“Okay, alright, honey. It’s okay. Shane’s gonna take your stuff into the guest room and I’m gonna get you something to make you feel better, okay?” She rubbed his arm lightly. “We aren’t mad, I promise. We told you to come over if you needed us, and we’re so proud you did, right Shane?” 

Shane bent and grabbed Ryan’s bag. “Exactly. Proud as we can be, bud. You did a good job coming here tonight.” 

Sara reached for his hand. “Come on, love,” She encouraged softly. “Let’s go in the bathroom and get you some medicine. Can you tell me what hurts?” 

Ryan latched onto her hand like a lifeline, other arm still firmly over his stomach. “Tummy hurts. I puked once before I came here. I didn’t like it.” 

“I bet. That’s no fun, is it?” Sara pushed him down gently until he was sitting on the edge of the tub. “How ‘bout we get some Pepto in that tummy of yours, then we’ll get you something fizzy to drink. I think I have some ginger ale in the pantry.” she found the bright pink bottle and pivoted, looking him up and down. “Do you have a fever, honey?” Ryan shrugged and wiped a few more tears from his face. “Okay. I’ll take your temperature before we go get you a drink.” 

Ryan took his medicine like a trooper, only making one little face when she took the dosing cup back to rinse it out. “Yuck.” 

“It does taste bad, doesn’t it?” She empathized, bending to get the thermometer from under the sink. “Hold still for me, baby.” She brushed the sweaty bangs back and scanned his temples, clucking softly. “Oh, honey, you aren’t going to work tomorrow. You have a fever. You’re staying right here in bed.” 

Ryan’s face crumpled and he reached out to her pitifully. “Oh, sweetie,” Sara set the thermometer down on the counter and hugged him tightly. “What’s all this, huh?” 

Ryan clung to her nightshirt, face making a wet patch as he nestled into her embrace. “What’s got you all worked up? It’s alright not to feel good and ask for help.” 

He mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like ‘scary’ and she ran a hand through his hair, comprehension dawning as Shane’s footsteps approached from down the hall. “You’re scared? Were you scared because you didn’t know what this would be like?” He nodded against her and she held on even tighter. “Baby, I promise you have nothing to be afraid of. Shane and I will keep you safe, I promise. And we’re not gonna tell anybody about you until you’re good and ready, okay?” 

Shane stuck his head in. “What’s all this?” His voice was mercifully gentle. 

“Ryan just doesn’t feel good. Can you go get him some ginger ale from the kitchen? I think there’s a few cans stashed in the pantry still.” 

Shane nodded. “Sure thing. Ry?” He spoke quietly. “I put your things out on the bed, bud. Your lil’ shark friend and your cozy blanket are waiting for you. Did you wanna wear your cool pajamas?” 

Ryan peeked out from Sara’s stomach and nodded pitifully. 

“Okay, love.” Sara said easily. “Let’s you and me go change your clothes while Shane goes and gets your cup, okay?” She hadn’t missed the way Ryan drank in her touches, melted with every single pet name that rolled off her lips so easily. How could anyone not want to spend their time with such a sweet boy? The thought that he’d had a bad run-in in the past lurked at the sides of her mind as she got him up and moving. It made her heart ache that he was so clearly starved for positive attention when he was Little. 

Sara turned down the covers and put the decorative pillows on the floor by the door. “Okay, honey. Do you need help getting changed?” 

Ryan was still shaking and holding his stomach, standing by the door looking lost as he stared at his things lying on the bed. 

“Ryan?” She asked softly, taking a step forward. He made to open his mouth and burst into another round of exhausted tears instead. “Come here, love. Come sit with me for a second before we get you changed, you need to calm down.” Sara had just gotten the distraught Ryan to sit down on the bed when Shane came in. “Help me get him undressed, babe.” She directed softly. Shane set the cup on the bedside table and tapped Ryan’s shoulder with a little smile. 

“Arms up, big guy. Let’s get that sweaty shirt off you.” 

Together, they had Ryan stripped down to his underwear in a moment. 

“There we go, Ry.” Shane slipped the pajama shirt over his head while Sara took the dirty clothes to the hamper. “You gotta move your arms, bud.” He murmured. Ryan had returned to gripping at his stomach with both forearms. It took a few rounds of gentle coaxing from them both before he moved his arms and let them pull the shirt onto his arms. 

“Good boy, Ryan,” Sara murmured, grabbing the pants. “Alright, honey, stand up for me so we can get these pants on you. After that you can crawl up in bed and get cozy, I promise.” Shane offered his hands and Ryan took them shakily, crying silently as he lifted first one leg then another for Sara to slide the pants onto him. He didn’t even wait for someone to tell him what to do next before he’d crawled up in the bed and slumped against the headboard, reaching for the plush shark. 

Shane sat down at his feet and Sara picked up the glass. “You should drink a little of this, sweetheart. It’ll help your tummy.” 

Shane watched Ryan cuddling the plushie. “Who’s your friend, Ry?” 

Ryan lay his plushie in his lap and obediently took a few swallows when Sara handed him the glass. “Sharkie.” He mumbled hoarsely, handing the cup back. Sara put it back down and took the blanket, tucking it around his legs. If Ryan had brought it with him, surely it was a comfort object just as much as the shark. 

“Well,” Shane cleared his throat. “How about you sit with Sara for a little bit till you’re ready to go to bed, and I’ll read you a little somethin’. Sound good?” 

Ryan’s face shone open and honest as he nodded slowly, scrubbing his hand over his face and tucking his shark under his chin. 

“Okay. Lemme go grab my tablet.” 

“Can I sit with you, honey?” Sara rounded the bed to his other side, crawling up under the covers when she got the little nod. “Come here, honey. Come sit with me. Do you want me to play with your hair? That always feels good to me when I’m sick.” 

“Yes, please.” It was barely audible to her as he curled up against her, surprising her by laying his head on her shoulder. 

“You’re doing so good, Ryan. You’re being such a good boy doing what we say and letting us help you,” She whispered, running her fingers through his hair. “You were such a good boy for coming over here. We’re very glad you let us help you.” 

Shane shuffled back into the room with his tablet and settled in on the end of the bed. “Alright, buddy. Let’s see, here…” He thumbed through the pages. “D’you like  _ The Velveteen Rabbit _ , Ry?” 

Ryan gave a sluggish nod, leaning more into Sara. 

“Okay, buddy. That’s a good bedtime story. We’ll read a story, and then it’s bedtime for all of us, okay?” 

Sara continued stroking her fingers through his hair, a tired smile on her face as she watched Shane settle himself and decide what voices he was going to use. He cleared his throat, winked at Ryan, and began to speak: 

“There once was a velveteen rabbit, and in the beginning he really was splendid…” 


	4. Chapter 4

Shane’s neck ached when he cracked his eyes open the next morning. He’d fallen asleep at the foot of the bed after reading the bedtime story, not wanting to leave the other two alone in case Sara needed another set of hands. The sun peeked through the blinds and he sat up. The trash can was still beside the bed just in case, but Ryan was curled up, face pressed into Sara’s neck and cuddling with his shark peacefully. He stood and stretched with a soft groan. 

“That bad, huh?” 

Sara’s soft voice piped up. 

Shane turned slowly. “Yeah, well. I fell asleep on the end of the bed, what do you expect?” 

She began to rub Ryan’s back softly. “You realize one of us has to go to work today, right?” 

“I’ll go.” 

“You’re gonna have to stay with him eventually, Shane. You can go today, but if he’s still sick then I’m going in tomorrow and you’re staying here.” 

Shane blinked. “Fair enough. I’m gonna go shower and get ready.” 

Sara, for her part, was soaking in the attention. She studied every part of Ryan’s face as he slept, rubbing his back to soothe him. Now that she thought about it, he looked more peaceful than she’d seen him in a good while. By the time Shane was sitting down to put on his shoes, Ryan had started stirring softly. 

“Mm.” he mumbled, curling closer to Sara. 

“Good morning, lovebug,” she cooed softly. “Are you feeling any better?” 

Ryan hummed and rubbed his face against the stuffed shark softly. “Don’ feel good, Sara.” 

“Okay. We’ll get you up and get you some medicine and try for some breakfast.” She rubbed his back a little more firmly. “Say bye to Shane, he’s gotta go to work now.” She watched Shane put his keys in his pocket and slip his sunglasses on. 

“Mmm, ‘bye Shane.” 

“Bye buddy. Feel better, okay?” he rounded the bed and kissed Sara on the cheek. “You two don’t get up to anything too fun while I’m gone.” 

“We’ll try not to.” She held Ryan a little closer and gave Shane a smug smile. “See you later, hon.” 

The better part of the morning was spent lounging in bed, watching Disney movies on Disney+ and (for Sara’s part) taking large amounts of pleasure in the cuddles Ryan was giving her. He let her play with his hair and curl up beside him, letting out sweet giggles now and then as the cartoons on the screen amused him. It was darling and Sara soaked it in just as much as she could tell Ryan was. By the time her lunchtime alarm went off, Ryan seemed to be doing well enough that she thought she’d chance making the two of them something. 

“Baby?” 

Ryan looked up at her with impossibly wide eyes, and Sara felt herself fall that much more in love with Little Ry. It seemed during their time together he’d slipped even younger. She might put him at between four and five years of age. 

“Do you want to come down and eat something with me?” Sara ran a hand through his hair and Ryan arched into the touch like some helpless kitten. “We need to get something in your tummy.” 

Reluctantly, Ryan let her up and watched as she slipped her feet into her fuzzy slippers. “C’mon. Up you get, lovebug.” Sara waited till he’d gotten up and took his hand. “Let’s go on to the kitchen and get some yummy lunch. I’ll make you some broth and crackers, and if you keep that down maybe we can have soup for dinner when Shane gets home. Does that sound good?” Ryan carefully followed down the stairs, still gripping at her hand, one arm tucked around his shark. 

“Good boy.” Sara murmured. “You and Sharkie sit here at the table for me while I make us lunch, okay?” She turned to lead him to the chair, but his lip quivered in a tell-tale way. “Oh, honey,” Sara breathed. “That’s alright. You can stay with me if you want to, I promise.” Ryan grabbed at her shirt loosely and she gave him a soft smile. “Now. You just watch me make us lunch.” 

Sara had a hell of a time getting the broth put together with Ryan under foot, but she did her best, always gentle and never doing anything sudden, keeping up a narration. “Now.” Sara licked her lips. “You have to go sit down now, honey. I have to carry these cups and it’s very hot, okay? I don’t want to burn you by spilling anything.” 

Ryan scuttled over to the table and she laughed softly as she set the cups down. “Now let me get the crackers.” 

Ryan ended up finishing only half his broth, looking over to her every second or so. Sara kept up her little nods and words of encouragement, occasionally brushing his hair back from his sweaty forehead. 

“There we go. Good boy. How do you feel about taking a shower for me while you’re up?”    
Ryan looked uncertain, wiping his hands on his napkin and reaching for his shark again. Sara handed the coveted item over and smiled softly. “Come on, lovebug. You’re gonna feel better once you’re clean, and after that we can watch a movie together. Sound good?” 

He didn’t look entirely convinced. “Okay.” 

“Good boy. Let’s go.” 

Sara put Sharkie on the bathroom counter and rubbed at Ryan’s arm softly. “Do you want me to put your pajamas in the wash for you? You can borrow something of Shane’s in the meantime.” 

Ryan eyed the bathroom warily. “C’n I have a bubble bath?” he asked quietly, not letting go her her hand even though she’d put Sharkie up on the counter already. 

Sara patted his back. “Of course you can, love. You wanna use one of my bath bombs?” 

“Yes, please.” Ryan sat on the closet toilet while she started the bath, looking subdued as he reached for Sharkie. When she turned again, Ryan was cuddling with his shark once more, a look on his face that spoke volumes. 

“Ryan?” Sara asked softly. “How ya feelin’ there, baby?” 

Ryan’s lips were pinched together, bangs plastered to his head in the wake of the soft billows of steam rising as the tub filled. He shook his head, clutching his shark closer. 

“Ryan, if you feel like you might be sick again, you have to tell me honey.” 

Ryan thrust the shark towards her and fell to his knees, fumbling with the toilet until he’d gotten it open. 

“Oh, honey,” Sara followed him, rubbing his back as he strained. “It’s okay, darling. You’re alright.” 

Once she was sure he was done, Sara got him up again, easing him down on the edge of the tub and flushing the toilet. “Baby,” She fussed. “You’re alright, I promise. We’ll get you nice and clean and then go watch a movie together.” Sara dropped a bath bomb into the water and turned off the tap. “You sit tight, love.” She spared a quick kiss to the top of his head. “I need to go and get you some clean clothes so we can wash those pajamas.” 

Sara did a quick scan of Shane’s half of the closet before grabbing one of his sweatshirts and calling it good. Returning quickly, she shoved the item onto the sink and wiped a few tears from Ryan’s cheeks. “It’s okay. Come on. Let’s get those clothes off and put you in that bath.” 

By the time she’d cleaned him up, Ryan was crying softly again. “I know, love. Let’s get you dried off and cozy, hmm?” Sara took the towel and helped him get dried off. “Let’s get you into these clean undies.” She held out the pair she’d found at the bottom of his bag. He shimmied into them and she held out Shane’s sweatshirt. Ryan eyed it warily. 

“Don’t have pants,” he stuttered the half-question, looking from the garment to Sara. 

“That’s alright, love. This ought to be plenty big enough on you, and you don’t need pants to cuddle on the couch, do you?” 

Ryan let her help him, and she couldn’t help but notice how cute he looked, swamped by the several extra inches of Shane’s hoodie. “Cozy?” 

Ryan grabbed Sharkie and gave her a bashful smile. “Uh huh.” 

“Good boy. Let’s go pick a movie to watch.” She eyed his bare feet as an afterthought. “Want your socks back on?” 

Ryan wiggled his toes. “Um. Please, Sara.” 

“Okay, love. Sit down and we’ll get you more medicine and I’ll put your socks back on.” 

Ryan sat back down on the closed toilet and she handed him the cup of liquid. “Drink that for me.” While he took the medicine, she bent down and worked the socks back onto his feet. “There we go. All nice and warm.” Sara rose with a smile and held out her hand. 

Ryan trailed behind her like a baby duck, quiet and withdrawn as she settled a cozy nest into the sofa and got him a bottle of water. “Okay, baby. Let’s sit down and cuddle for a while until Shane gets back.” 

By the time Shane’s keys rattled in the front door, the two of them (three, if you counted Obi’s purring form) were curled safely together on the sofa watching Stuart Little. Obi’s tail twitched every moment or so, and Sara kept up a light rhythm of petting Ryan’s hair. 

“Hello!” Shane’s keys clattered into the bowl on the hall table and soon enough he was rounding the corner. “Where the hell’s his pants?” Shane asked blankly, staring at Ryan laying there in just his hoodie and some socks. 

The effect was instantaneous. Ryan recoiled, peaceful look dropping from his face as he leaned into Sara. Sara held him closer and shushed him softly. “It’s alright, love,” She whispered. “He only brought one pair of pj’s, Shane,” She said pointedly. “And they’re dirty now. I told him you wouldn’t mind him borrowing your clothes. You  _ don’t _ mind, do you?” Ryan buried his face in Sharkie’s plush exterior. 

Shane licked his lips, mentally cursing at himself. “Uh, no. Ryan, I don’t mind it, I swear. You can wear my stuff.” 

“See, love?” Sara smiled and rubbed at Ryan’s arm. “Shane is okay, nobody is mad at you.” She paused the movie. “In fact, once he changes clothes, he’s gonna watch with us and we can all be cozy together.” 

Shane took his cue, heading up to change out of his day clothes. By the time he’d returned Ryan had calmed down suitably enough, nestled up beside Sara, peeking over his shark with big eyes. 

“Hey there, big guy,” Shane spoke quietly, clearing his throat and kneeling in front of Ryan. “If I scared you earlier, I didn’t mean to. I’m sorry, bud. I missed you today. Are you feeling any better?” 

Ryan shook his head mutely. 

“Can I sit there?” he pointed to the empty space next to Ryan. 

Ryan nodded. 

“Okay. Thank you.” 

By the time the credits rolled, Ryan was almost asleep, head lolling on Sara’s shoulder. 

“Hey big man,” Sara said affectionately. “How ‘bout we get you into bed?” 

Ryan nodded lethargically. 

“You gonna get up, bud?” Shane arched a brow in amusement when Ryan made no move to get up, just nestled closer to Sara. 

Sara laughed. “Okay. Maybe Shane should just take you up and put you to bed, then.” 

Shane pushed to his feet, stretching lithely. Obi was not amused that his perch had removed itself. “Y’want me to carry you?” 

Another nod. 

“Okay, bud.” Shane bent and easily scooped Ryan into his arms. He was surprised that he hadn’t noticed just how easy Ryan was to manipulate physically before now. Littles were biologically lighter than Caregivers or Neutrals, and now that he was carrying Ryan up the stairs af if he weighed nothing, Shane was kicking himself for not seeing it earlier. He heard Sara following and was grateful as she darted ahead, pulling the covers back so he could lay Ryan down. Ryan was fast asleep as she lovingly tucked the blankets around him, smoothing his hair down and kissing his forehead. 

“Mm,” Ryan rolled to his side and cradled his shark. “Ni’, Momma.” he murmured, snuggling down into the blankets as Shane flipped his night light on. 

He turned just in time to see Sara’s face light up like a beacon, pressing another kiss to Ryan’s face. 

“Goodnight, sweetie.” she murmured, gesturing for him to follow. 

They cracked his door and tracked across the hall to their room. 

The two got ready in silence, Sara’s every movement exuding happiness as she changed into clean pajamas and brushed her teeth. Shane puzzled over it all, moving in tandem to the bed and crawling in with her. 

The soft glow of Ryan’s night light cascaded a gentle warmth into the hall as Shane situated himself beneath the covers. “So you’re ‘momma’ and I’m chopped liver?”

Sara leaned against his shoulder. “Don’t be like that. Please. Just because he prefers me right now doesn’t mean he hates you. But you do need to try a little harder to earn his trust. We don’t know why he prefers me over you, but in case he does have a bad past with men..” she shrugged and turned off her lamp. “Tread lightly. Be careful with him. You know he loves you when he’s Big, but it’s going to take some effort on your part to get him to love you just as much when he’s Little.” 

Shane flipped off his own lamp and laid his pillow flat. 

“Yeah,” he murmured. “I guess I haven’t been too good at this, have I?” 

“Find something he likes. He says he likes Legos. You two should build me something tomorrow. Give him something to look forward to when I get back.” 

They settled into their places comfortably, she on her back and he curled on his side facing the door. “Mmm. That might work.” 

“Of course it’ll work,” he could practically  _ see _ the smug look on her face as she spoke. “Because I’m the one that suggested it.” 

“Where’d you put those boxes?” 

“Hall cupboard. There’s some Star Wars and a couple Marvel ones.” 

“Legos it is.” 


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ryan has...a previous story that isn't too good in this chapter, so if talking about abusive relationships isn't your thing, I'd skip to the end or avoid this altogether.

“Sara--”

“Shh, don’t wake him, poor little guy didn’t get any sleep last night he was throwing up so much.” 

Shane sighed. “Sara, please. I don’t know what to do with him.” 

“You’ll be fine.” She murmured, kissing his cheek. “I promise. Now go back to bed for a while. I’m sure he’ll wake you up when he needs you.” 

As it turned out, ‘when Ryan needed him’ was about ten minutes after the front door closed. Ryan shuffled quietly into the room, holding Sharkie and looking dwarfed in Shane’s shirt. 

“Mornin’ bud,” Shane rolled over with a smile. “Come and lay down, it’s early still.” 

Shane shuffled over and awkwardly patted at the mattress. Ryan curled up on Sara’s pillow and held his shark close. “Get some more sleep, bud. You were up late.” 

Shane pulled the blankets up higher and patted Ryan’s shoulder softly. Ryan let out a tired sigh, lashes fluttering. “That’s it. Get some sleep and when we wake up I’ll get you something to eat.” 

“Hey, buddy,” Shane portioned out the oatmeal. “Why don’t you come sit with me and eat something?” He set the bowls on the table. “You want some juice?” Thank god they still had some orange juice left. 

Ryan shook his head, still hugging his shark. 

“You don’t want any juice?” 

Ryan shook his head again. 

“Well, will you sit down and eat some oatmeal? Sara got you some cool Legos, and I thought we could build them after we eat.” Shane put his coffee on the table. 

Ryan edged towards the steaming bowl sitting across the table from Shane. His tummy was empty, and Momma said food would help, but he hadn’t been able to keep any food down. He sat down in his chair and put Sharkie in his lap. “I want my Batman pajamas.” 

“Okay,” Shane said easily, sitting down and digging into his own breakfast. “They’re all clean for you, bud. We can put them on, but you have to try and eat or you won’t feel good.” 

Ryan morosely poked at his oatmeal, Shane cataloguing him carefully as he sipped at his coffee. The little guy seemed down--not at all like the Ryan Shane knew and loved. He cleared his throat. “I want you to eat a little more, please.” 

Ryan’s eyes widened a bit and he quickly began eating in a way that made Shane uneasy. “Slow down, buddy. Your tummy is already upset and you don’t want to overdo it.” Ryan slowed, but only enough to say he’d done what Shane asked. “Okay so Batman jammies, and then we’ll go on and pick out our Lego set, okay?” 

Ryan nodded, not at all looking very happy. Shane stood and stretched easily, taking his bowl to the sink. “Come on. Why don’t you go to the bathroom real fast and I’ll go get your pajamas.” 

Ryan grabbed Sharkie and scurried, head down as he brushed past Shane. Shane put Ryan’s breakfast things in the sink, wondering about the change in attitude. When he’d watched Ryan with Sara last night, he was so open and so relaxed...but now? It was almost as if he were...afraid or something. 

Shane thought it over as he tracked down the hall to the laundry, grabbing the folded jammies off the dryer top and headed toward the hall bath. “Here you go, bud.” He knocked lightly. Ryan poked his head out and grabbed them. 

“I won’t take too long.” Something about the mixture of Ryan’s small voice and the statement he was making had that uneasy feeling creeping into Shane’s stomach again as the door shut in his face. 

There was a rustling from the other side of the door, and not five minutes later Ryan appeared, fully dressed in his pajamas and shoving a sloppily folded sweatshirt into Shane’s arms. 

“Oh, uh, you didn’t have to fold it, bud. That’s okay.” 

“Okay.” Ryan fidgeted on the spot, looking down at his socked feet. “Um. Legos? Please?” 

“Sure, bud.” Shane set the sweatshirt on the side table. “You want superheros or you want Star Wars?” 

“I...getta choose?” 

“Sure, bud, I mean Sara didn’t exactly buy them for me, did she? These are for you.” He opened the hall closet, showcasing the few boxes tucked on top of the blankets. “Now which one will we do?” 

Ryan squished his shark that much closer under his chin, staring with wide eyes at the boxes. “C’n...c’n we do Star Wars? I wanna do Han an Chewie.” 

“Sure. You wanna build the Falcon or you wanna do the Imperial Cruiser?” 

“Falcon.” 

“Okay, Falcon it is. Why don’t you and Sharkie go sit at the table for me and I’ll get this unpacked.” 

Ryan scuttled, ever quick to do what was asked, and Shane took the box to the kitchen to sort the pieces into little plastic containers. Once that was done, Shane put it all on a tray with the instructions and carried it back to where Ry was nearly bouncing in his seat with excitement. “Wait, hang on--” Shane set it all down and moved to the note Sara had put on the fridge. “Sara says you’re due another dose of fever meds, bud.” 

Ryan  _ pouted _ , like actually freaking pouted and Shane felt some of the pieces of his heart melt at the action. “Hey, listen, it’ll be over before you know it and then we can build something kickass with those Legos.” 

Ryan lit up. “Okay! I’ll take it, but only ‘cause you said we c’n play.” 

“Good deal, bud.” Shane went and got the bottle from the bathroom and shook the pills into his hand. “Let’s see…” He grabbed the cup Ryan had been using and filled it with water. “Okay, you. Get this into you and then we’ll see about all these Legos…” 

Ryan obediently swallowed the pills, not complaining once as Shane sat down and buried himself in instructions. 

“Okay, so the dark grey ones go on the bottom…” 

Ryan didn’t care. He’d already lost it over the little figures of Han and Chewie and Leia. Sharkie sat on the table and watched while Ryan grabbed random pieces and put together a passable reproduction of a Tie Fighter. 

“Oh no, Leia! They’re on our tail! Quick, Chewie we gotta fix the hyperdrive!” Ryan squeaked, making the tiny figurines click-clack around on the table-top. 

“What, uh...whatcha doin’ there, bud?” Shane put the papers down. “I thought we were supposed to build this--” he pointed to the picture. 

Ryan shook his head. “No. Legos are for playin’, Shay.” he explained seriously. “Make shapes and build stuff. Not always about makin’ what the pictures say.” Though, his Daddy had used to get onto Ryan for not playing the right way with his Legos. Daddy always said they had to be built like the box, glued together, and then put on a shelf. Ryan wasn’t allowed to touch any of Daddy’s Legos once he’d helped build them. Ryan liked it better when he could just build what he wanted, and have fun. He put the toys down slowly, eyeing Shane with wide eyes. “Um. Sorry, Shay. We...we c’n do it like the box.” Ryan took his Tie Fighter apart quickly, sorting the pieces back into the containers. 

Shane frowned, tilting his head. “Ryan,” he spoke clearly and softly. “Buddy, if you want to show me how to play with them, we don’t have to build them like the book says. If you wanna build Tie Fighters and X-Wings, then we can. But I’m not as good at playing as you are.” 

Ryan picked up Sharkie again, almost shielding himself with the stuffie as he watched Shane curiously. “Come on, buddy,” Shane coaxed, picking up some pieces. “Show me how you built that cool Tie Fighter just now.” 

Ryan took a minute to uncurl himself, but once he’d put Sharkie back in his spot, he softly coached Ryan through how to build a rudimentary version of the ship. 

“An’ now you jus’ put Chewie in it!” He explained, leaning over and snapping the little figurine into Shane’s Tie Fighter. 

“That’s cool, bud. How’d you learn to do that?” Shane made the little ship fly through the air. 

Ryan carefully seated Leia and Han into his X-Wing. “Dunno. Jus’ did.” 

“Well I think it’s pretty cool.” Shane told him, watching Ryan fly the little carefully constructed ship around. “I could never just learn that. I’d have to look at these diagrams.” 

Ryan’s face fell. He put the Legos down on the table and fiddled with the hem of his pj shirt. “Daddy used to make me do it just like the paper said. It wasn’t very fun.” 

Shane felt that funny feeling in the pit of his stomach again. “What do you mean, bud? Did you have a Caregiver before?” 

Ryan kept looking down. “Daddy was mean. He made me play quiet an’ he made me glue the Legos together an put ‘em on a shelf an’ not touch ‘em. Sometimes he would say mean stuff to me if I was too loud or if he had a girl at home an’ I asked too many questions. He forgot about food a lot, so I just ate peanut butter sandwiches an’ popcorn for supper.” Ryan grabbed Sharkie and held him close. 

“Ryan,” Shane spoke up. “I hope you know that me and Sara both would never ever be mean to you, bud.  _ Ever _ . We love you and we just want to help you, okay?” Shane could feel his heart breaking into pieces. 

Ryan kept staring down at Sharkie and Shane licked his lips, putting his own Lego creation onto the place mat. “Buddy?” he spoke quietly, moving slow and deliberate as he rounded the table to stand beside Ryan. “You know we love you, right?” 

Ryan’s lip quivered. “But...I’m bad.” 

Shane put a hand on his shoulder. “No, Ryan. You’re absolutely not, okay? You’re  _ such _ a good boy, and Sara and I love you to pieces. No more talkin’ about being bad, okay?” He gently tugged at Ryan’s arm till Ryan was leaned up against him, then wrapped his arms around him. “You’re the best boy, alright?” Shane rubbed at his back and Ryan melted into the touch. Shane couldn’t help himself--he dropped a quick kiss to the top of Ryan’s head. “I promise you’ll never have to eat sandwiches or popcorn for supper around here unless that’s what you want.” 

That got him a little giggle, which he cherished as he tightened the hug. This situation with Ryan...he had to figure out more, but he had a hunch there was far more to the story. 

“How ‘bout you and I build a blanket fort and watch something on tv?” 

“M’kay,” Ryan’s voice was  _ small _ , and Shane felt something tug inside of him. 

“Okay.” he repeated. “You’re a good boy, Ry.” Shane ran a hand through his hair. “You’re gonna be just fine here, I promise. We’re gonna keep you safe.” 

It was a few minutes before Ryan was calm enough to remove his face from Shane’s stomach, but once he did, there was genuine happiness shining through his wet eyes. 

“Come on,” Shane whispered with a little smile. “Let’s go make an epic fortress, huh?” 

* * *

Ryan still asked about Sara about every half hour, despite Shane’s best efforts. Not long after they finished up their fort, Ryan got sick again. Thankfully his pajamas were spared and he made it to the toilet in time. 

“Shay,” he whined pathetically, tears running down his face as he leaned against the toilet. 

“Yeah, I know, buddy,” Shane empathized, rubbing his back. “I know. I’m gonna get you all cleaned up, brush those teeth, and then we can go back and get you some juice while we sit in the fort and get cozy.” Something in the back of his mind said he’d officially raised himself to Caregiver status, and the rather loopy way he felt was probably due to the hormone release, but he really didn’t care about semantics at the moment when Ryan was crying his eyes out. 

“C’mon,” he coaxed. “Up we get, here we go.” He flushed the toilet and helped Ryan climb to his feet. “C’mon, brave boy. Let’s go brush your teeth and get you settled.” 

“Momma,” Ryan sobbed softly, clinging to Sharkie as Shane pressed the animal into his arms. 

“She’s gonna be home so soon, bud. And she’s gonna give the biggest kissies, I promise. Now open up.” Shane brushed his teeth quickly, then had him spit into the sink. “Now let’s blow your nose and get you back to your blankets.” 

“Momma,” Ryan begged, lowering himself to the pillow/blanket floor miserably. 

“I know, bud. Come and sit with me, huh?” Shane opened his arms and Ryan curled up against him. “You’re a good boy, Ry. Settle down and we’ll watch some more tv until Momma gets back.” 

* * *

By the time Sara’s keys rattled at the door,  _ Shane _ was ready for her to be home just as much as Ryan was. 

“Where’s my boys?” Sara’s keys jingled into the bowl in the hallway, quick footsteps sounding down the carpet. 

“In here,” Shane called softly. 

“Oh, well…” she eyed the fort softly. “Isn’t this an engineering marvel?” She squatted down and peered beneath the overhanging blanket. “There they are.” 

“Momma,” Ryan stirred softly from his impromptu nap. 

“Hi, baby. Are you feeling any better, love?” She crawled into the little fort and leaned back against the bottom of the sofa. Ryan shook his head miserably. 

“Got sick again.” 

“I’m sorry baby. Would a kiss make it better?” 

Ryan nodded softly. 

“Okay, sunshine.” Sara leaned over and kissed his temple. “I love you.” 

“Love you.” he parroted. 

“So what did you two boys do today?” She settled again, noting the way Ryan was curled up comfortably against Shane, Shane’s arm draped over his shoulder. 

“Well, Ry and I built some Legos. But then he got sick and he didn’t feel good, so I built this epically awesome fort for us to hide in.” 

“An’ cuddled,” Ryan put in helpfully, nuzzling up to Shane’s side. “Papi gives the best cuddles.” 

Shane’s ears turned a slight shade of pink, but he held Ryan closer, kissing the top of his head. “I’m glad you think so, buddy.” 

“I’m happy you and Papi had so much fun today, lovebug.” Sara grinned at Shane, who felt a loopy grin cross his own face. “Momma’s gonna go take a shower now and change out of these work clothes.” Sara dropped a kiss to Ryan’s cheek and then Shane’s, disappearing in a moment up the stairs. 

* * *

Getting Ryan to sleep that night was an ordeal of its own. 

“Momma,” he reached out with a pout. 

“Baby, you have to get some good sleep,” Sara coaxed, setting up his new nightlight. (She may have gone to Target after work and gotten one of the fancy ones that project stars on the ceiling, and a couple spare sets of pj’s and undies. Ryan was happily ensconced in his new Captain America pj’s, curled up with Sharkie in bed.) 

Ryan watched her with curious eyes as Shane strolled in, hair damp from his shower. “You ready for bed, Ry?” 

Ryan turned his pouty eyes on Shane, reaching with one hand. “Papi,” He drew out the ‘I’ in a way that foretold holy hell of a tantrum if one sleepy boy didn’t actually  _ get _ some sleep. 

“Yep,” Shane sat down on the bed and put his hand on Ryan’s ankle. “That’s me. I’m Papi.” he looked over at Sara as she switched on the new nightlight, soft blue stars dancing across the ceiling. “And Papi would like you to get some good sleep tonight, bud. Can you do that?” 

Ryan settled more comfortably into the mattress. “Stay.” 

“Baby,” Sara broke in. “Papi has to go to work tomorrow, and Momma needs good sleep if she’s gonna give a sleepy little boy some good cuddles tomorrow.” 

Ryan put Sharkie in a strangle-hold. “M’kay. But Papi isn’t leaving without hugs.” 

The two laughed in tandem at the adorable comment, Shane leaning down to kiss Ryan’s forehead. “Don’t worry. I would never do that.” 

“Now sleep, please, lovebug.” Sara coaxed, turning off the lamp and taking Shane’s hand. 

“We love you, Ry.” Shane murmured. “Have sweet dreams, bud.” 

* * *

Ryan was out before the door had closed behind them, Obi curling around Shane’s ankles fondly. 

“Where ya been, buckaroo?” Shane picked up the cat and kissed his head, Obi purring heavily. “We coulda used you in our fort today.” Obi chirped softly. “Oh, I see,” Shane shut the door to their room behind them and put Obi on the bed. “Up to more secret agent cat stuff. Like Perry the Platypus. Well, your secret is safe with us, bud.” Obi curled up on Sara’s pillow happily. 

“Y’know, Shane,” Sara stuck her head out of the doorway, face coated with suds. “I really think we ought to keep him.” 

“What, keep him? He isn’t a stray cat, Sara.” Shane shucked off his pants and put them at the end of the bed. “He’s a Little. And if what he told me today is true--”

Sara splashed her face off, dried it quickly and returned to the doorway. “What did he say?” 

Shane sat down on the bed, fiddling with his fingers. “Sara, it’s...it’s pretty gnarly.” 

“How do you mean?” She sat beside him. “Shane?” 

He looked up, an uneasy look on his face. “Sara, he had a previous Caregiver. And uh, and it wasn’t a great situation. I don’t know the details because I didn’t press him, but if that’s true…” He looked up, a firm look on his face. “He needs us. And he needs an example of what a good home looks like. I think we should give it to him.” 

Sara looked just as harrowed as he was, nodding. “I won’t push it. But I think you’re right. Sometimes people find each other just when they need it the most. I think he needs us as much as we need him. I’ll see about starting up the paperwork when I go back on Friday. But I think we should keep this on the downlow as much as possible from the rest of the crew. Only a need to know basis for the higher-ups.” 

He kissed her softly. “I knew I could count on you.” 


	6. Chapter 6

The next morning, Shane and Sara crept into the room softly to wake up Ryan together. 

“Hey, sunshine,” Sara rubbed his arm softly. 

“Wakey wakey, Ry,” Shane sat down on the bed and Ryan scooted over, pressing his face into Shane’s leg. 

“Mmm.” 

“We have something to tell you, lovebug.” Sara sat at the foot of the bed, tucking her feet up. Ryan wiggled onto his back with a little frown. “Mm, wha’s that, Momma?” he yawned widely, squeaking as Shane poked him in the belly. “Not nice, Papi.” 

“Oh, it isn’t?” Shane grinned. “I’m sorry, lil’ guy.” 

Sara rubbed at Ryan’s leg softly. “Baby, we wanted to know….how you would feel if we said we wanted to adopt you as our Little?” Sara’s brows knitted together in a worried way and Shane reached out with a foot, pressing his toes to her leg to help soothe. She relaxed a little as Ryan started to play with the sleeve of Shane’s hoodie. 

“I getta stay?” he asked after a moment of fiddling, looking up at Shane. 

“Remember what we said yesterday? About how much we love you?” 

Ryan nodded. 

“You wouldn’t ever be treated the same way with us. Not like before.” Shane asserted, running a hand through Ryan’s hair. 

“An’ I’m good?” Ryan asked, voice so very small and fragile. 

“You’re the best,” Shane murmured with a smile. 

“We love you so much, Ryan.” Sara cut in. “We think you’d be very happy here, and it would make us happy if you decided to stay.” 

Ryan sat up slowly, the most adorably resolute look on his face as he leaned over and hugged Shane tightly. “I love you lots an’ lots, Papi. M’glad you finded me, ‘cause I don’t like havin’ t’go to that place. But my classification officer says I gotta once a month or I’ll--” 

“Be sick?” Shane broke in, holding him tight. “Bud, I think you’re sick right now ‘cause of that.” 

Ryan gave a cute squirm that had Sara’s heart doing a two-step. She scooted up and cleared her throat. “Lovebug, doesn’t Momma get a hug too?” 

Ryan wiggled out of Shane’s arms and into hers with a little sigh of comfort. “Mm, Momma gets lotsa hugs. But Papi finded me.” 

“That’s right, he did, baby.” She smoothed his sleep-mussed hair and smiled at Shane. “Whatcha think, Papi? Think this is our little guy?” 

Shane smiled back, probably looking like a lunatic as he watched Ryan laying up against her with his eyes closed. “Yeah. I Definitely think we couldn’t ever do better. Ryan is the best.” 

Ryan’s eyes popped open and he beamed at Shane from the safety of Sara’s embrace. “Can I have one more hug before I have to go get ready to go?” he held out his arms and Ryan crawled back over to him. 

“Uh huh.” Ryan hugged him tight. “Love you lots an’ lots, Papi.” 

“I love you too, bud. I think we’re all glad I went looking for you that day.” He kissed Ryan’s hair. “Now I gotta go get dressed or I’ll be late.” 

Ryan went willingly to Sara’s lap, curling up against her happily. 

“Love you,” Shane kissed her cheek. 

“Love you too. Have a good day. See what you can find out today, and I’ll do some digging tomorrow.” 

“Will do, milady,” Shane gave a mock salute as he backed out of the room. 

“What do you want to do today, precious boy?” Sara swayed slightly, Ryan clinging to her shirt with loose fingers. She stared down at him fondly. 

“Um,” He seemed embarrassed to make his request, and Sara smiled in encouragement. 

“Go ahead, baby. I won’t laugh at you or say it’s stupid.” 

“Momma,” he hid his face in her side. “C’n we watch Carebears?” 

“Of course we can! Did you know there’s a Carebear with a sunshine on his tummy?” She tickled Ryan’s stomach. “Just like my little sunshine!” 

He giggled softly and just like that, he was relaxed. 

She’d noticed that since he’d come to stay, his age had dropped far smaller than what his paperwork said. Sara wondered whether it had to do with his previous Caregiver, whoever the bastard might be. Whether Ryan had forced himself to be older than he really was due to taking on some of his own caregiving responsibilities during that time frame. Whenever he was ready to surface again, she was going to have to have a good talk with him about it all. Shane would like as not want to be in on the discussion too, and Ryan would need the support. They could talk more about registering as his Caregivers once he was Big again. 

Ryan fiddled with her shirt idly and she stroked a lock of hair from his forehead. She’d gotten something for him while she was at Target, and she wasn’t sure how he’d respond to it. He’d loved the pajamas, and his new nightlight, so she was heartened by his reaction. Though his reaction now made sense--Ryan had probably never been given anything more than the basic Big Person stuff when he was little. He’d probably gotten Sharkie when he was out of that situation, just to allow himself one small item besides his Nintendo Switch. Sara lavished him with cuddles and soft little kisses, enjoying the still sleepy boy in her arms before she decided they should go to the bathroom and eat something. Shane had left a few minutes before, hollering a goodbye up the staircase. 

“Lovebug?” 

“Mm,” Ryan had been toying his fingers at his lips for a few minutes now, like he wasn’t quite sure if he wanted to put them in his mouth or not. 

“Let’s go potty and then go have some waffles. You ready to get up, sweetheart?” 

“Mmm.” 

“I have a surprise for you once we eat our breakfast.” 

“Mmm, okay Momma.” 

“Good boy, baby. Let’s get up.” She tapped lightly at his arm until he wiggled off the bed, standing up. “Okay. You go potty for me and I’ll go brush my teeth.” 

Ryan wandered into the bathroom and she headed across the hall, slipping the little object into her robe pocket. Brushing her teeth quickly, she headed back to his room. “Ready?” 

Ryan held out the hand that wasn’t holding onto Sharkie. “Okay, lovebug. Let’s go get our tummies full. I’m so glad you’re feeling better, sweetie.” 

Ryan took her hand and moved down the stairs with her. “M’glad too, Momma. But Papi says I still have fever.” 

“We can check when we get downstairs.” She helped him down the last few steps. “Go and sit down at the table, love. I’ll get the thermometer and we’ll check your temperature before I start breakfast. Did you wanna watch some tv while I cook?” 

Ryan shook his head. 

“Okay, lovebug.” She retrieved the temporal scanner from the hall bathroom and brought it back to the kitchen, pressing it lightly against his head. “Yep. Still fever. I wondered where Papi was last night. He got up to go potty and didn’t come back for a while.” Sara set it on the table. “Let’s get you some more medicine.” 

“Mm, Papi taked my temperature.” Ryan said, smoothing Sharkie’s soft exterior with the flat of his hand. “Said wait till I waked up for medicine, an’ gave me a kiss an’ said I hadda go back to sleep.” 

Sara brought him the water and the tablets. “Well, aren’t you a good boy for going back to sleep like he asked!” 

Ryan took the pills and beamed at her happily. “Thank you, Momma.” he pronounced softly. 

“And good manners. My sunshine is so polite. Come on, baby. Help me mix up these waffles.” 

* * *

By the time they’d eaten and settled into the now semi-permanent blanket fort, Ryan was pliant and calm. “Okay, baby,” Sara had queued up the Carebears as requested. “Ready for your surprise?” 

He nodded shyly. 

“Okay. Close your eyes.” 

He did and she pulled the bright yellow pacifier out of her pocket. She hadn’t been able to resist buying it once she’d seen the sunshine applique on the button. “Open.” She whispered. 

Ryan’s eyes popped open and he let out a soft sound somewhere between a kitten and a pigeon’s coo. “For me?”

“Yes, baby.” She murmured. “Just for you.” 

“Doesn’t mean I’m a baby,” he ventured cautiously. 

“Well, you are my baby. But no, love. You aren’t that little. But that doesn’t mean you can’t have something to keep those fingers out of your mouth.” 

He blushed. “Sometimes I suck on ‘em when m’sleepin’, but m’not a baby.” 

“No, honey.” She held it out. “Of course not. Do you want to try? Just between us, while we watch Carebears?” 

Ryan took it from her gently, eyeing it softly before sticking it in his mouth and curling up to her. 

“Okay. You’re such a good boy.” Sara started up the show and they settled into a good rhythm, running her fingers through his hair as he watched, enthralled. 

* * *

Ryan was asleep again, napping with Sharkie and his binky when Shane rolled in. Sara was doing something with her I-Pad when he walked into the living room. The tv was playing a quiet episode of House Hunters in the background. 

“Hidey-ho,” Shane murmured, bending down. 

“Shhh!” Sara murmured. “He’s been asleep for half an hour and I’d like him to have more.” 

Shane nodded, crouching down. “He looks cute like that, with his lil’ binky. I take it you did some more shopping than I was aware of?” 

She nodded. “I had to, it’s the little sunshine.” She stroked Ryan’s hair. 

Shane’s face was softer than she’d ever seen it. “He’s a cute little guy.” 

“Did you find out anything?” Ryan’s soft noises as he suckled on the pacifier drowned out any silence. 

“Mm. I asked around on the down low, went to HR and all that. They gave me a few references, but mainly the thing is we’re gonna have to go to the courthouse if we want to really find out anything. Talk to our Classification Officers and all that. But I’d say odds are pretty good. We’re gonna want to talk to him when he’s Big again, but he’ll need time to adjust. We all will. We’ll need to ride this out together. I put in for time off for a few days. You should do the same thing tomorrow. If we’re gonna stabilize him, then all of us need to be here to cement that bond.” 

She nodded. “I understand. I’ve already put in time off from here actually, I did that first before I went researching online.” 

Ryan snuffled sleepily and mumbled something around his binky. Sara shushed him quietly. “Go back to sleep, love. It’s not time to eat, yet.” 

“I’m gonna go change and shower. Leftovers or should I put something together?” 

“If you wouldn’t mind.” She gave a sheepish look. “I’ve had my hands full today.” 

“I understand. I’ll see what we’ve got.” 

Ryan slept soundly through the soft sounds of Shane singing to the soft music on the radio as he cooked dinner. Sara stroked Ryan’s hair and hummed quietly. 

“Dinner’s almost ready, you wanna wake him up?” Shane looked the picture of a domestic dad, apron over his pajamas and his sasquatch tee shirt, mis-matched brightly colored socks standing out sharply against the carpet. 

“Yeah. Give us a minute.” 

He nodded and headed back to set the table. 

“Ryan,” Sara sang. “Wake up, lovebug. It’s time to eat dinner, sunshine.” She rubbed his arm. 

Ryan grumbled around his binky, blinking up at her. 

“Hi, baby. Did you have a good nap?” 

He nodded. 

“I’m glad.” Sara kissed his forehead. “It’s time to get up and go potty and wash our hands. Papi’s home and he made dinner.” 

Ryan crawled out slowly, leaving Sharkie in the fort. Sara followed. He looked adorably confused standing there in the middle of the living room. “Go potty,” She took hold of his shoulders and pushed him towards the bathroom. “I’m going to help set the table.” 

She waited till the door shut behind Ryan to shuffle into the kitchen. 

“Hello.” She greeted with a little smile. 

“Hello, there.” Shane pivoted from the stove and gave her a soft kiss. 

“Whatcha makin, there, chef?” 

“For your consideration, I have made a lovely…” he pulled the lid off with a flourish. “Macaroni and cheese. With a side of rolls and green beans, and that leftover chicken from the other day just in case we didn’t have enough.” 

“Well, I appreciate the gesture. Someone’s been quite the clingy handful today.” 

Ryan moved into the kitchen, binky firmly in place and a sleepy look on his face. He made a bee-line for Shane and flung his arms clumsily around his middle, burying his face in his shoulder. 

“Hey, bud. I hope you had a good sleep.” Shane rubbed his back. “I sure did miss you today.” 

Ryan hummed, reaching up to remove the binky.    
“Missed you, Papi.” He put it right back in. 

“Okay, bud. You go be good for me and sit down at the table. Momma has to help me get all this food over there.” 

Ryan sat down, binky still bobbing between his lips while Shane and Sara ferried plates back and forth. 

“Do you want me to cut your food up, love? Those look like pretty big bites for a little guy.” Sara held out her hand. “But you gotta let me hold onto that binky while we eat.” 

He handed it over remorsefully, blinking sleepily down at his plate. Sara cut his food for him while Shane brought drinks to the table. 

“Alright, bud. Eat up. We want you to eat all that good food so you can be big and strong.” Shane smiled, sitting down and picking up his fork. “What do you want to do after we eat, bud? You get both of us all to yourself tomorrow. Maybe we’ll see a movie or go to the zoo.” 

“We could go to the zoo, it’s supposed to be nice tomorrow,” Sara sipped her wine lightly. 

“What do you think, big guy?” Shane wiped some cheese off his mouth, then leaned over and wiped some off Ryan’s cheek. 

Ryan nodded. “I like the zoo. Daddy never taked me ‘cause he said I was too bad. So I went by myself when I was big. After college he left. So I had lotsa time to do stuff.” Ryan kicked his feet a little. 

Shane and Sara exchanged glances as they continued eating, making things as normal as possible for Ryan. “That sounds great, buddy. How ‘bout we plan on going after breakfast tomorrow?” Shane asked the table at large. 

“That sounds good. We’ll have plenty of time, and we can pack lunch and snacks,” Sara was almost as excited as Ryan. “And if we have time at the end…” She gave Ryan a beaming smile. “We can get Ry another friend so Sharkie isn’t alone.” 

Ryan  _ wiggled _ . 

He was more happy than he thought he would  _ ever _ be again!! He had a Momma and a Papi and new pajamas and a binky  _ and _ he got to go to the zoo! Momma and Papi even wanted to keep Ryan! Tomorrow was gonna be the best day  _ ever _ !! 


	7. Chapter 7

“Ryan!” Sara sang happily. “Ryan, wake up, sunshine!” She tugged the curtains back. “We’re going to the zoo!” 

Ryan rolled over. Momma was being  _ way _ too happy for this early in the morning. He peered grumpily up at her, cuddling Sharkie. “M’sleepy.” 

“I know, baby. Papi packed a bag just for you! Now come on, don’t you wanna see the cool new clothes Momma got you at Target?” 

Ryan wiggled upright. “M’kay.” 

“Alright, sunshine. Come over her and we’ll pick out your outfit. Something fun for a nice day out with Momma and Papi.” She opened the top drawer where she’d put his shirts. 

Sara honestly hoped that Ry would be so distracted by having the two of them there that he wouldn’t be worried someone would see them and take pictures. Shane had gotten up early and packed a road trip bag for Ryan, then made a quick trip over for snacks and a little something extra that he thought might make things easier. She watched Ryan look over the stacks of shirts with awe in his eyes. 

“Ohhh,” he seemed taken with the softly colored shirt with the sea turtle on the front. “This, please?” 

“Yes, baby. Good choice. Sea turtle shirt.” Sara pulled the shirt from the drawer and closed it. “Okay smart boy, why don’t you pick out your pants? Shorts or long pants?” She pulled the next drawer open. 

Ryan poked at the pants, finally deciding on a pair of khaki cargo shorts with little fish embroidered on the pockets. 

“Good choice, lovebug.” Sara let him pull them out and closed the drawer. “You wanna pick some socks out? Papi picked out some cool ones for you.” She pointed at the third drawer. “You wanna see?” 

Ryan handed her the shorts and tugged at the drawer. “Ohhh,” the same soft noise of interest left his lips as he opened the drawer and was met with the bright colors of the novelty socks Shane had splurged on (some being from his own collection to augment until the rest arrived). Ryan tugged out the ones with the sea otters on them, an enchanted look on his face. “This please.” 

“Okay, love. Those are good ones.” 

* * *

Once Ryan was dressed and his jammies back in the drawer, Sara herded their excited little guy downstairs to say good morning to Shane and Obi and have some breakfast. 

“Hi, Obi!” Ryan chirped happily, plopping his little butt down on the rug and letting the cat come say hi. 

Sara stuck her head in the kitchen. “Ry is dressed and ready. He loves the socks.” 

Shane sipped his coffee and smiled. “I knew he would. Thank God for one day shipping, am I right?” 

She shook her head fondly. “He needs desperately to be spoiled.” Sara whispered, turning slightly to watch Ryan playing with Obi. 

“He does,” Shane echoed. “And we’re gonna give him everything he needs, Sar,” he took her hand. “I promise. Short of having a conversation with him about all that when he’s Big, this is all we can do.” 

Sara blinked away another round of angry tears and nodded. “You’re right.” She clapped her hands and straightened her spine. “Ryan!” She called. “Come on, lovebug, come and eat! We need to get moving so we can have some fun today!” 

Ryan popped up happily. “Okay, Momma.” 

Sara beamed at him. “Good boy. Come on! Papi’s got cereal.” 

Ryan scrambled into the kitchen, nearly bowling Shane over in his excitement to get a hug. 

“Good morning, Ry.” Shane held him tight, grateful he hadn’t been holding his coffee at the moment. 

“Mm, hi, Papi.” He mumbled, face pressed tight to the shelter of Shane’s chest. 

“Hi, buddy.” Shane rubbed his back. “Sleep good?” 

“Uh huh.” Ryan gripped at his shirt. “But sleep better if you stay.” 

“Okay, buddy. I’ll stay tonight, alright?” Shane kissed the top of his head. “Now let’s eat something. You want Mini Wheats or Cocoa Puffs?” 

Ryan pulled away to nuzzle up to Sara’s shoulder affectionately. 

Sara petted at his cheek. “I love you, baby. Now let’s tell Papi what we want to eat, okay?” 

Ryan nodded. “Cocoa Puffs, please.” 

Shane slipped an extra granola bar into the backpack on the counter and picked up the box of cereal. “Excellent choice, honey.” He poured the bowl and held it out to Ryan. “Now come sit down at the table and Momma will put your milk in for you. You want some apple juice?” 

Ryan nodded excitedly. “Um, please.” 

“Alright. I’ll get your juice and you go sit with Momma.” 

Ryan kicked his feet and babbled on happily, excited about all the animals he would get to see as he ate his breakfast. 

Shane and Sara exchanged smiles as they ate their cereal, indulging Ryan in his excitement. It would be good for him to get excited about something, to forge positive associations and happiness with time spent together. They chatted and talked until he’d eaten his entire bowl of cereal, Sara cleaning up the dishes while Shane took Ryan out on the porch to put on sunscreen. 

“Papi, nooo,” the soft chatter floated through the screen door. 

“Yes, buddy. We don’t want anyone getting burnt today.” Shane sprayed the sunscreen. Sara checked through the bag one last time, tucking Sharkie into the top just in case. 

“Boys, are we ready to go?” She called, refiling Obi’s water dish. 

They came traipsing back through the living room, Ryan looking excited and Shane a bit bemused as he handed her the bottle. 

“Okay. Potty break and then everybody in the car!” Shane poked Ryan in the tummy and Ryan giggled. “Go on, bud.” 

Ryan scrambled for the hall bath and Shane grinned. “I’m gonna go upstairs and take my bathroom break. Make sure he gets his hands washed?” 

“Of course.” 

* * *

Ryan chattered away like an excited monkey the entire drive up there, playing with Sharkie in the back seat. It was, frankly, adorable. 

“What do you want to see first, Ry?” Sara asked him as they pulled into the parking lot. 

Ryan froze suddenly. “M-Momma,” 

“What is it? What’s the matter, lovebug?” Sara turned around. “What’s wrong?” 

“Momma,” Ryan suddenly looked like he might cry. “What if someone sees?” 

“Baby,” She reached down quickly. “Don’t worry, sunshine. Papi has already thought about that, look!” Shane parked and she tugged out the hat and sunglasses. “Look at this, baby. You can wear this hat and these glasses and nobody will know, I promise! Nobody’s gonna know about you until you’re good and ready, we promise!” 

Shane turned around in his seat. “Buddy, you need to breathe, please. We love you so much, Ry, we’d never let anyone find out until you were ready. You can wear this, like a disguise! It’ll be so cool like a spy movie.” 

Ryan hiccupped and nuzzled at Sharkie. “O-okay, but only ‘cause I’m brave like you said, right Papi?” 

“Of course you are, buddy. You’re my brave boy, I promise. Now let’s get you ready and we’ll have fun, huh? No more tears, sweet boy.” Shane unbuckled himself and got out of the car, moving around back to open Ryan’s door and lean inside. Sara took the tags off the items and handed them back to Shane. 

“Look at you, bud,” Shane cooed, setting the hat atop Ryan’s head. The Winnie the Pooh sun hat covered enough of his face that with the Spider-Man sunglasses, Ryan’s face was nearly obscured. “See?” He took the compact mirror Sara passed him, holding it up. “You look great, bud. Nobody can tell.” 

Ryan peered into the mirror, lower lip wobbling. “Promise?” 

“I promise. You’re safe with us, bud.” He handed the mirror back and took the tissue Sara replaced it with. “Now let’s get you cleaned up and we’ll go have some fun.” 

* * *

First hiccup aside, the morning ran rather smoothly. Ryan stayed firmly sandwiched between the two of them, clinging to their hands and chatting softly. Once they’d reassured him at the ticket booth that he was near unrecognizable with his little disguise, he was fine. 

“Momma, look!” He squeaked, stopping near the door to the aquarium. “C’n we go, Papi, please? Wanna see the otters!” 

“You wanna go see some otters, Ry?” Shane was ridiculously decked out in Full Dad Gear, backpack on and sunglasses with his own sun hat hanging down. 

“Please, Papi,” Ryan did a little dance, tugging on Sara’s hand. “Momma, they’re so cute!”

“They are cute, baby. Alright, we’ll go see them. But first we need to take a break because Momma has to go potty.” 

Ryan pouted as she dropped his hand. “Don’t pout, sunshine. I’ll be a minute. Why don’t you go with Papi and see if you can’t go potty.” 

Sara ducked into the women’s restroom, taking care of business quickly and washing her hands, humming as she did so. 

“You two look cute, with your little one.” An older lady was drying her hands, beaming at Sara. 

“Oh, um. Thank you.” Sara tossed the paper towels in the trash. “We um, we haven’t finalized things quite yet, so we’re trying to keep things low key.” 

“I understand, love. My daughter has two little ones with her partner. They kept things secret for quite a while before they were allowed to be made public. Just wanted you to know he’s a sweet little one. Probably wants to be just like his Daddy if those hats are anything to go by.” She nodded politely and left Sara to her thoughts. 

* * *

“There’s my boys!” Sara returned to the bench to find Ryan tugging at Shane’s hand. “Lovebug, did you go potty?” 

Ryan nodded. “Uh huh. That soap smells funny, though.” 

“Well, I’m glad you washed up for Papi. You’re such a good boy.” 

Shane stood up and took Ryan’s hand. “He’s being very good today, isn’t he, Momma? I think this little dude deserves a stuffie from the gift shop.” 

Ryan’s face lit up. “Please, Papi?” 

“Of course, bud. Now come on. Let’s go see those otters.” 

Sara strolled along behind, subtly taking pictures of Ryan attached to Shane’s side. They were matching with their little hats, and it was cute. 

“Momma!” Ryan turned around and held out his hand impatiently. “Momma, come on!” 

“I’m coming!” Sara stowed her phone away and hurried to catch up. Ryan led the way, gripping at both their hands once they were all inside. 

“Hey, Ry, look at those jellyfish!” Shane sounded just as enthused as he pointed to the tank. “They light up, isn’t it cool?” 

Ryan pressed his face near the tank, still clinging to Shane’s hand. “Ohh, Papi they’re so cool!” 

Shane laughed. “They are, aren’t they?” 

“Momma, look!” 

“I see, baby,” Sara said obediently. “Let’s go look at those fishies Momma likes and then we can see the otters, okay?” She was just looking for an excuse to get some of her little guy’s attention now, shamelessly. 

“Okay!” Ryan scuttled over and took her hand. “What fishes does Momma like?” 

Ryan took her hand happily. 

“Well, there’s the yellow tang fish, that’s one of my favorite. And there’s the angel fish, and the parrot fish, those guys are cool too…” Sara chattered on while Shane followed behind at his own pace. 

“Momma! That one’s BIG!” Ryan stopped and pointed. 

“Oh! It looks like somebody startled that poor little puffer fish and he puffed up! Puffer fish get really big when they’re afraid, so they can try and scare off bigger fish that might hurt them.” 

“He looks like a balloon, Momma.” Ryan said seriously, pressing up against her side. “What’s he afraid of? Papi says not to be scared if I’m with you an’ him.” 

“And he’s exactly right,” Shane appeared from behind, patting Ryan’s back. 

“That poor little fish is scared, Papi,” Sara explained. “Ryan was just wondering why.” 

“There’s lots of people, noises.” Shane shrugged. “He probably just got overwhelmed.” 

Ryan cuddled up to Shane’s side. “That happens sometimes.” He mumbled. 

“C’mon, bud. Let’s go and see those fish Momma likes.”

“Okay, Papi.” 

Midway through looking at all the fish, Ry surfaced again, tugging at Shane’s sleeve. 

“What is it, bud?” Shane asked indulgently. 

“Ummmm,” Ryan bounced on the balls of his feet. He blushed and ducked his head a little. 

“What’s the matter? You can tell me anything, Ryan. Please.” 

“Umm c’n I have my binky?” 

Sara lit up, scooting closer at the plaintive question. “Of course you can, baby. Papi will get it for you.”

Shane tugged the backpack off his shoulder and dug around until he found the item, holding it out. “There we go, buckaroo.” He winked and Ryan giggled as he popped the bright yellow pacifier into his mouth. Shane slung the pack back onto his shoulders and took Ryan’s hand. “Alright, little dude. Let’s go and find those sea otters.”

* * *

“Papi, Momma,  _ look _ !” Ryan took out his binky just long enough to coo and point. It went right back in as he danced excitedly near the barrier. The otters slid down their little slide and scampered back and tumbled over one another in the water of their enclosure. 

“Shane, how did we get so lucky?” Sara murmured quietly. 

“I dunno, Sar,” he took her hand and squeezed. “But we have one hell of a little guy.” He raised his voice. “Ry, come stand over here, buddy. Let the other people have a look too.” 

Ryan obediently moved, startling them both by reaching up to Shane. 

“You want me to carry you?” 

Ryan nodded. 

“Okay, bud. Let’s stay here for a bit and then we’ll move on to something else.” Shane hoisted Ryan onto his hip. By the time they were done with the otters, Ryan was tired out. He pressed his face up against Shane’s shoulder, drowsily sucking at his pacifier. 

“Papi, I think we should get this little guy home soon, what do you think?”

Shane patted Ryan’s back firmly. “I think so. Let’s get Ry over to the gift shop and pick out a lil’ friend first.” 

“Lovebug, do you want to pick a new friend?” 

Ryan nodded tiredly. 

“Okay, baby. We’ll go pick a friend and then go on home.” 

* * *

All said and done, Ryan ended up falling asleep right after they rung up his new friend. The fluffy pink octopus dangled by one of its tentacles from his hand as Shane carried him to the car. Sleepily dubbed ‘Ocho’, the new friend had been an instant hit when he’d seen it on the shelf. 

“Alright, little guy,” Shane tucked Ryan into the back seat and Sara got the blanket from the trunk. “You have a good nap.” He buckled Ryan in and tucked the blanket around him, putting his stuffies around him. 

Sara clambered into the passenger seat. “Well, I’d say today was a success, what about you?” 

Shane shut his door and took off his hat, setting Ryan’s hat and glasses inside of it. “I think today was a smashing success.” 


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short filler chapter wherein ry's background comes to light. If you have issues with mentions of abusive relationships please dont' read this chapter.

“Ryan?” 

“Wake up, love, it’s okay.” 

The soft kitten-like noises of distress continued in the dark as Ryan pressed his face to Shane’s side. Sara sat up and turned on the bedside lamp, rubbing at his arm. Sharkie and Ocho were tangled under the blankets. Sara freed them and set them in her lap, in case Ryan wanted either of them. 

“Wake up, buddy, c’mon.” Shane coaxed again, as Ryan started to shake--clearly he was upset by whatever he was dreaming. “ _ Ryan _ .” Shane’s voice became firm. 

Ryan’s eyes snapped open, breaths coming quickly as he spit out the pacifier Sara had so lovingly coaxed him to take before bed. “I’m sorry!” he sat bolt upright suddenly, hands shaking as he pressed his arms to his chest, looking around with wild eyes. “I’m s-I’m sorry…” Ryan let out a soft sob, pressing the heels of his hands to his eyes. 

“What are you sorry for, love?” Sara spoke carefully. It was evident that this wasn’t quite their Little Ry, but rather a confused mixture of the two headspaces.

Ryan shuddered. Shane sat up slowly, placing a warm hand on the flat of Ryan’s back. 

“What’s going on, bud?” Shane asked. “You can talk to us.” 

“Sorry,” he inhaled deeply, not meeting either of their eyes as he finally pulled his hands away from his face. “I’m…” He shuddered out another breath. “I’m sorry. I…” Ryan leaned a little into Shane’s hand, fiddling with the hem of his Thundercats pajama shirt as he looked down at the blankets. “I was...dreaming. About things. Um, not so nice things, stuff that happened...before. Didn’t have the best Caregiver um, in college. He was...he tried. But um,” Ryan sniffed and Sara couldn’t restrain herself from offering up Ocho as a means of distraction. He took the toy and kept his gaze down, fiddling with the soft fabric. “Matt was...I mean we were both young. Classifications barely present themselves before college, if not during for a lot of people, you know that. But I was stupid. He was a frat bro, you know the type...red solo cups and all that…” Ryan gave a nervous laugh, as if three AM were a perfectly normal time to be baring one’s soul about the hard stuff. “He was a womanizer. He drank, had girls over. Um, a lot actually. I don’t really even know how he managed not to get kicked off campus for a lot of his behavior. But he was really nice when he wasn’t….like that. We were good for a while, actually. He had this girlfriend, Lilly. Elementary Ed major. She wanted to teach third grade, and she was perfect.” Ryan rubbed at the plushie’s soft fabric for a moment, seeming to gather his thoughts. “Um. They lasted about a year, actually. But once they had a fight, they  _ really _ had a fight. He wasn’t so nice after that. I think you can figure out what happened…” he shifted uncomfortably. “After that I figured out that it was really only because of her that he was...not treating me that way.” Ryan’s grip on the stuffed octopus was more of a strangle-hold now. Shane’s eyes were full of murder as he looked over Ryan’s bowed head. Sara nodded softly, but motioned to Ryan and he softened the slightest bit. Shane rubbed Ryan’s back slowly and Ryan melted toward the touch. 

“Did he hurt you?” Shane asked, voice full of barely contained rage. 

Ryan bobbed his head in the slightest nod. “He...um, he spanked me a lot. Didn’t want me distracting him from videogames or women.” 

“Ryan,” Shane spoke up again, cutting his eyes up to where Sara was tugging tissues from the box on her nightstand. “Did he hit you?” 

Ryan fiddled silently with his stuffie, taking the tissues from Sara and dabbing at his nose. 

“Ryan,” Shane sounded pained. “Please. Tell me that ass-bag didn’t hit you.” 

Ryan looked up, and the quiet resignation on his face was almost worse than if he’d started to cry again. “I can’t,” he whispered. “Shane, I can’t say what you want to hear.” 

“How much?” Shane’s voice was flat now, in the way that meant he was majorly pissed about something. Sara scooted closer to Ryan and rubbed at his arm, offering support. 

“I don’t...anything. He went off at the slightest thing. Sometimes I couldn’t even tell what set him off, but I guess when I’m in headspace I’m not exactly reliable for details.” he shrugged. “Sometimes he’d spank me till my ass was bruised and then send me to bed without dinner. Other times he’d just smack me around a little, nothing too much in visible places, just in case someone saw and alerted the campus classification center.” 

Sara leaned her head on Ryan’s shoulder and he sighed softly. 

“That guy is such a fucking asshole.” Shane proclaimed suddenly. “I mean, what kind of person does that to someone defenseless? Scumbags, that’s who!” he answered his own question and Sara could feel him nearly vibrating with the intensity of his upset. Shane grabbed Ryan’s hand. “Ryan. Look at me.” Ryan did, nibbling on his lip. “Ryan, if that guy ever shows up again, he’s dead. I swear, I’m gonna rip out his spine and beat him with it for what he did to you. I want you to understand that you never ever have to worry about any of that here. Sara and I are safe, and I swear to you that we’re gonna make a great place for you here. Alright?” 

Ryan leaned against Sara, squeezing at Shane’s hand tiredly. “Okay, Shane. I’m just scared, though. I feel like...somehow this is all some kind of joke,” Sara took his other hand, gently running her thumb over his knuckles. “I just…” it sounded like he might cry again, and he ducked his head. “You two have been so nice to me...not just about this. But, especially about this. And something inside of me says that it’s too good to be true and one day I’ll wake up and….you won’t want me anymore.” Ryan’s voice trailed off into the soft tones of a frightened child. 

“Hey,” Shane spoke up quietly, reaching out his free hand to cup Ryan’s chin and bring his gaze back up. “I promise you none of that is true. Right, Sar?” 

Sara nodded. “Baby,” She caught herself, caregiving instincts running rampant at the story they’d been told. “Ryan, that’s...that’s more than true, okay? We would  _ never, _ ever, hurt you or lay a hand on you, okay?” Sara’s voice wobbled and she cleared her throat. “We love you and we would be absolutely more than over the moon if you’d let us give you a safe and happy home.” She looked up and let go of his hand, gently rearranging some stray hairs on his forehead. 

“I love you, too,” Ryan’s chin crumpled and he let go of Shane’s hand, engulfing Sara in a tight hug, burying his face in her shoulder. “I want…” he tried to speak, but it seemed the sliding scale of his fighting headspaces had suddenly gotten him choked up, unable to say anything for his crying. 

“It’s alright,” Shane rubbed Ryan’s back. “Take your time, Ry. We’re right here.” 

“I want--” Ryan sucked in a deep breath, and suddenly in the same moment Ryan disappeared and Little Ry came roaring back to the surface. “Just...wanna...be here! Be here forever an’ stay happy, please!” He gasped, holding Sara tighter. 

“Oh, baby,” Sara crooned softly, petting at his hair. “You will be, I promise. We’re never ever gonna let you go again. You’re gonna be very happy here.” She swayed lightly. 

“We promise, Ry.” Shane echoed, all his fight draining out of him as Ryan’s upset. “You’re never gonna have to worry about any of that bad stuff anymore.” He glanced at the clock. 4:45. They’d all be cranky monsters in the morning if they didn’t try and get some sleep. “Come on, bud,” he coaxed. “Let’s all lie back down, huh? Let Momma blow your nose and we’ll lie down. We need to get some good sleep to feel good in the morning.” They hadn’t told Ry yet, but the first meeting for their classification officers was scheduled for 11:30 that morning. He needed a clear head if he was going to be able to outline what they hoped to have happen with Ry. 

“Here, baby,” Sara’s voice was as soft as it had ever been, cooing and coddling and caressing as she got Ryan to calm enough to blow his nose. “Let’s get you all ready for sleepy time.” She managed to get the whimpering mess of clingy Ryan to lay back down while she turned off the light, his nightlight taking over and projecting stars up on the ceiling. 

“Come here,” Shane whispered, turning to his side so that Ryan could curl up against him.

“Here, lovebug.” Sara murmured, offering the discarded binky which Ryan took without a fuss this time. He might find it nice to not talk for a while, Shane figured, after all of that. 

“Go to sleep, Ry.” he kissed at the top of Ryan’s head. 

“We love you, baby.” Sara mumbled tiredly, curling up to Ryan’s back. “We’ll see you in the morning.” 


	9. Chapter 9

Shane couldn’t help but snap a few pictures when he woke the next morning. Sara was curled around Ryan protectively, her tiny form somehow wrapped around Ryan’s larger one. Ryan’s face was smushed up against her neck, a quiet squeaking sound punctuating their soft even breaths as he sucked at his binky. Ryan’s pajama shirt was rucked up in the back, showcasing a good few inches of his skin between that and his pajama pants. Shane was filled with happiness at the sight, it was so purely domestic that he just wanted to crawl right back into bed instead of getting ready for the day. He set his phone aside and debated, but he knew if he waited any longer to get downstairs Obi would start yowling for his breakfast. 

“C’mere, you.” Shane plucked Obi off the end of the bed. “Breakfast time.” 

By the time he’d gotten Obi squared away he could hear Sara stirring upstairs. Shane had started coffee brewing by the time she made an appearance. Ryan was attached to the back of her shirt like a baby duck, Sharkie held firmly in one arm. 

“Morning.” Shane murmured. He went to kiss Sara good morning, but ended up with an armful of clingy Ryan instead. “Oh, hey, bud.” Shane picked him up easily (he figured the grumpy face was due to Sara’s size making it unwieldy to carry him). Ryan put his head on his shoulder with a soft hum. 

“Someone is still sleepy.” Sara smiled softly. 

“Aren’t we all?” he replied, rubbing Ryan’s back as he leaned over and kissed her cheek. 

“I’ll make something. What do you want?”    
“What time is it?” Shane settled into the kitchen table with Ryan on his lap. 

“Almost seven. We have to be there at nine. I’ll just do eggs and frozen potatoes. Nothing fancy but it’ll tide us over and be quick enough that we can still get dressed and out the door on time.” 

She set to puttering around the kitchen and Shane sighed softly. 

“You still sleepy, Ry?” 

Ryan hummed, binky still firmly in place. 

“Alright, buckaroo. You just wake up a little.” 

Sara placed a mug of coffee by his elbow and he gave her a grateful smile. 

“Momma’s gonna make us some breakfast and I want you awake enough to eat something by the time she’s done.” Sara flitted back across the way with a sippy cup of juice, set it by Shane’s arm again, and headed back for the sizzling pan of peppers, onions, and potatoes. “You want some apple juice, bud?” 

Ryan took his binky out and shoved it at Shane. 

“Here. Trade me.” He offered the cup and Ryan took it. Shane put the binky on the table and picked up the mug, taking a welcome sip of coffee. He watched Sara moving around, Ryan occasionally patting at his arm and asking for his cup. 

“Alright, you two.” Sara set the bowls in front of them. “Breakfast is up. Ryan, honey, can you sit in your chair please so Papi can eat?” Ry shoved his cup at Shane and wiggled into the chair beside him. 

“Mm,” he rubbed his eyes with a little yawn. “Papi, tengo hambre,” Ryan mumbled, and Sara raised a curious brow. Shane shrugged.

“Eat up, bud.” Shane tapped his fork and Ryan picked it up clumsily, digging in. 

Sara made a mental note that if Little Ry were to speak Spanish, she’d want to pick up some books for him. Something to help him build a basic vocabulary as well as make him feel more at home. It would be a good learning experience for them all. She cleaned her plate quickly and stood up. “Babe, will you handle the dishes? I’m going to run upstairs and take a shower before we have to leave.” 

“Sure.” Shane had a couple helpings of potatoes all said and done. “Ry, you want the last little bit?” 

“Um, please.” 

“Okay, here you go,” Shane tipped the leftovers into Ryan’s plate and gave the dishes a quick wash. “Eat up, buddy. We gotta get upstairs and dressed. We need to be in the car in 45 minutes.” 

Ryan kicked his feet, eating the rest of his potatoes. Shane was pleased his appetite seemed to have returned during the last couple days. 

“Done.” He announced a moment later, shoving his empty plate up for Shane’s approval. 

“I see that. You did good, buddy. Let’s get this in the dishwasher and head up to get you dressed. Do you want to pick some of your new clothes out?” 

Ryan put his binky back in and watched while Shane put the dishes away. 

Shane stuck out his hand. “Come on. Let’s go find you something to wear.” 

* * *

Ryan was quiet while Shane opened the drawers. “Want pants or overalls?” 

Ryan shrugged. 

“Okay. Let’s wear some overalls then.” Shane put the pair of overalls on the bed and opened the drawer of shirts. “Animals or super heros?” 

Ryan pointed to the shirt with the bright cartoon fox on it. “Good choice.” Shane pulled the shirt out and it joined the pile on the bed. “Let’s get you some socks and then we’ll be in business.” Shane grabbed the Care Bear socks and shut the drawers. “Buddy,” he began softly, uncertain. “I want you to put on some protection today, we have to drive for a little bit and it’s gonna be a while before we can get to a bathroom.” He bent slightly and gave a half-smile. “Can you be good for me and go look under the sink, get a pull-up?” 

Ryan stared at him for a minute, jaw set and eyes taking on a stubborn look to them. Shane thought he was in for a tantrum, until Sara walked into the room with damp hair on top of her head, bathrobe on. “Did you pick his clothes?” 

“Yeah. We got that far. I was just getting to the pull-up, but Ry doesn’t think he needs one.” 

“Baby, can you go put one on just in case? We know you’re a big boy, but we don’t want you to ruin your overalls in case you have an accident.” 

Ryan’s face lost all its fight and he nodded with wide eyes, scurrying off to the bathroom. 

“How do you do it?” Shane asked. 

“Practice. Been babysitting for years.” 

Ryan came back, looking proud of himself but very naked except for the pull-up. He reached out and Shane laughed quietly. 

“Want me to get you dressed, buckaroo?” 

Ryan reached again. 

“Okay, love. You let Papi get you dressed. I’m going to get dressed and then I’ll be back.” 

Sara left quickly and Shane held up the shirt. “Right. Arms in, bud. We gotta move if I’m gonna get dressed too.” 

* * *

Sara ended up in the back seat with Ry and his bag of entertainment. She’d filled a tote with coloring books and snacks and extra pull-ups, along with Sharkie and Ocho and Ryan’s blanket from his apartment. 

“We all ready back there?” Shane slipped on his aviators. 

“We’re ready.” Sara gave him a nervous smile and a thumbs up. “Aren’t we, lovebug?” 

Ryan nodded happily, pointing at his bag. 

“Sharkie or Ocho?” 

He pointed at the octopus and Sara handed it over while Shane backed down the drive. 

“Alright. We’re on our way.” Shane pronounced, nerves bubbling in his stomach. 

* * *

The drive up was relatively peaceful, skies bright and a slight wind as they pulled into the parking lot at the classification center. Ryan looked around sleepily and handed Sara his binky. 

“Where are we, Papi?” 

Shane put the car in gear and turned around. “Today’s a special day, Ry. We’re going to fill out our paperwork today. Momma and I want to adopt you, remember?” 

Ryan nodded and clung a little tighter to Sharkie and Ocho. 

“Well we gotta go inside and fill out these papers if we want to be able to do that.” Shane explained. 

Ryan looked over at Sara as she unbuckled her seatbelt. “Do you have to go potty?” she asked, straightening up his things and putting them all back into the bag. 

Ryan blushed and nodded. 

“Okay. We’ll get our stuff together and then go inside. Babe?” 

Shane looked back. “Mm?” he tucked his things into his backpack. 

“Got everything?” 

“Sure do.” He patted the backpack nervously--all their valuable paperwork tucked into the folders within. 

“Alright. Here we go.” Sara stepped out of the car and rounded the car. “C’mon, lovebug. Do you want your blanket or do you want to leave it in the car?” 

Ryan set the blanket aside and held out the stuffies. 

“Okay. Let’s put your friends in your bag and then we’ll go in.” 

Shane shut the door and stretched slowly, slinging his backpack over his shoulders. “Hold our hands, please.” He reached out and Ryan took his hand, watching Sara situate his bag and shut the door. She took his spare hand and they moved towards the very official looking building. 

“Careful on the steps,” Sara cautioned. Ryan carefully climbed the steps, clinging to their hands. “Okay,” Shane held the door and she took Ryan through. “First stop, bathrooms.” She gestured toward the corner, where the signs lit up brightly. 

“Momma!” Ryan squeaked, scurrying over to where Sara stood by the benches. She figured the one time it took Shane longer than her in the bathroom was probably because he had Ryan with him. 

“Hey, lovebug!” 

“Momma!” Ryan stopped in front of her and gave a big smile. “Papi said I was good ‘cause I didn’t even need the pull-up, I wasn’t even wet!” 

“That’s so good, sunshine! I’m so proud of you!” 

The few clustered Caregivers standing around gave fond smiles and Shane blushed softly. 

“Alright, bud. Let’s go. Hold onto Momma’s hand, please.” He turned and headed toward the desk. “We’re here to see someone about starting our adoption paperwork.” 

“Lovely. If you’ll stand to the side, please, I’ll see who’s available.” The aide behind the desk picked up her phone. “I’ve got a couple here looking to fill out their paperwork for adoption. Are you free? Thanks.” She hung up and pointed off to the right. “Hallway number three. Lydia will help you out, fourth office on your left.” 

Shane filled out the mandatory questionnaire, checking off all the little boxes while Sara kept Ryan entertained.    
“We’ll need you to fill out these personality assessments each personally, and if you feel anything needs to be addressed by Ryan’s classification officer while he’s here you’ll need to take care of that as well.” 

Sara exchanged a glance with Shane. He nodded softly and dug into his pocket. “Ry? Can you be a good helper for me and go with Momma, get me a Mountain Dew? There’s a machine in the lobby.” He gave Sara a couple crumpled bills. 

“Okay!” Ryan was practically vibrating with excitement at having been given such an important task. 

“Alright, Ry. Let’s go get Papi his soda.” 

As soon as the door closed behind the two of them, Shane leaned forward. “Listen. We uh, we gotta make this quick. We only know as much about Ryan’s past Caregiver as he’s let us know so far. But long story short--not a good one. We need to know...if that’s gonna cause any problems down the road, y’know. What do we do?” 

“Well.” She looked at him with a calculating stare. “I’d start by letting him see his officer today. Maybe re-evaluate him. Sometimes it can cause problems with the classifications if the Little in question hasn’t had a great experience. Since he started regressing around you, have you noticed him acting smaller?” 

Shane nodded. “Yes. I think so. I’m pretty sure...I just...I just want to make sure he’s going to be okay.” 

“Let me make a call.” She picked up the phone, tapped away at her keyboard, and dialed an extension. “Jen? Hey, it’s Lydia. I’ve got one of your cases in my office. A Ryan Bergara. He’s moving forward with his Caregivers today and they want a re-eval. Yeah. Standard panel, just check on things. Make sure that he’s good to go and that there’s no concern with his age range changing. I’ll send them down in a few. Thanks.” She hung up and gave Shane a soft smile. “Don’t worry. Jen’s one of the best. Ryan’s lucky to have her. We’ll get him taken care of in no time.” 

Ryan came scampering back in, holding out the bottle excitedly. “I got it!” 

Shane turned with a smile. “You sure did! Thank you, I was getting really thirsty.” Ryan sat down beside him and wiggled happily. Shane made a show of cracking the bottle and taking a large swig. 

“Ryan? Do you remember Miss Jennifer?” 

Ryan gave a shy nod, reaching for Sara’s hand. Sara squeezed his hand reassuringly. 

“In just a second I’m gonna take you guys down the hall and you’re gonna talk to her by yourself for a little while, okay?” 

Ryan nodded again, reaching down to grab Sharkie from his bag. He held the toy close to his chest. “Okay,” he whispered. 

“Good boy, baby.” Sara murmured, smiling. “It’s okay. She’s just gonna ask you some questions.” Sara signed her part of the paperwork and handed it back to Shane. 

“What’s going on in there?” Sara paced uncomfortably. “They’ve been in there so long…” 

Shane laughed, resting his elbow on Ryan’s bag of things. “Will you calm down? He’s basically being re-classified, it’s bound to take a while.” 

“But an hour, Shane?” Sara stopped pacing and sat down beside him. “He’s so little and he’s in there alone with that woman…” 

“She’s his classification officer, Sara. She’s not gonna like, hurt him or anything.” 

The door burst open and Ryan ran out, holding Sharkie by one fin as he ran toward Shane. 

“Ryan-what?” Shane stood, wheezing as Ryan ran smack into him. “Hey, take it easy.” Shane held him tight. “It’s alright. What’s going on?” 

“Don’t hate me.” 

Ah. Big Ryan, then. 

“We’d never hate you. We told you that last night and we meant it.” He pronounced, as Jennifer stuck her head out the door, looking apologetic. “I’m sorry. I’ll let you three have a moment before we talk. I’m inside if you need me.” She shut the door once more. 

“Ryan,” Sara stepped close and rubbed his back. “What happened in there?” 

“I--” Ryan took a breath, face pressed into Shane’s shoulder. “I got...I got re-classified.” 

“And you’re upset about that?” Shane patted his back. “Buddy, what’s got you so upset?” 

Ryan wiggled free, a half-crazed look to his eyes. “I-I’m…” he hugged Sharkie tightly. “I’m...I’m four.” he whispered, looking down at his feet. “I-I just...When Matt treated me like that...he hated that I was so young..I-I just...I started acting older I guess. They couldn’t even tell on my tests by the time I got around to getting classified.” 

“Ryan Bergara,” Shane spoke firmly, grabbing him by the shoulders and looking into his eyes. “My good friend Ryan Bergara. You have nothing to be worried about. Sara loves you. I love you. And we’re going to give you a good home, okay? You can be safe with us, you don’t have to worry about that anymore. We don’t care how young you are. We love you whatever age you are, and we’re going to keep you whatever age you are.” 

Sara tugged a tissue from her pocket and held it out. “Blow your nose, Ry,” She murmured. Ryan let her help blow his nose, then hugged her tightly. “Love you.” 

“We love you too, honey. Really, whatever that paper says we could care less. We just want  _ you _ .” 

Shane picked up their bags. “Now let’s get back in there and get this ball rolling. By next month we could be official!” 

Ryan gave him a watery smile, plucking Sharkie from Shane’s grasp. “Okay. But on the way home Sara drives. You’re a comfier pillow to fall asleep on.” Ryan’s eyes crinkled with impish glee and Shane shook his head fondly. 

“Oh, alright. But I’m only letting you use me as a pillow ‘cause you look so damn cute in those overalls.” 


End file.
